How to Stop Google Chrome from Using So Much Memory

Google Chrome is the most popular web browser on the planet, renowned for its speed and vast library of extensions. However, it also has a notorious reputation for being a resource hog. If you have an older computer with only 8GB or 16GB of RAM, opening just a dozen Chrome tabs can bring your entire system to a grinding halt, causing the fan to spin wildly and other applications to stutter.

Chrome uses so much memory because it isolates every single tab and extension into its own separate background process. This is fantastic for security (if one tab crashes, the whole browser doesn’t crash), but it is terrible for your computer’s memory.

Fortunately, you don’t need to switch to a different browser. You can tame Chrome’s memory consumption by tweaking three specific settings.

Step 1: Turn on Memory Saver

In recent updates, Google finally acknowledged the memory problem and introduced a built-in feature specifically designed to fix it: Memory Saver. This feature automatically puts inactive tabs to “sleep” when you aren’t looking at them, freeing up the RAM they were consuming.

1. Open Google Chrome.
2. Click the three vertical dots in the top right corner of the window.
3. Select Settings from the drop-down menu.
4. In the left-hand sidebar, click on Performance.
5. At the very top of the page, locate the Memory Saver toggle switch.
6. Turn the switch On.

Once enabled, if you leave a tab open in the background for a long time, Chrome will silently pause it. When you click back to that tab later, Chrome will quickly reload it. You will even see a tiny speedometer icon in the address bar that, when clicked, tells you exactly how many megabytes of memory Chrome saved by putting that specific tab to sleep.

Step 2: Audit and Delete Your Extensions

Browser extensions are the second biggest cause of Chrome bloat. Every extension you install (ad blockers, grammar checkers, password managers, coupon finders) runs constantly in the background on every single page you visit. Having ten active extensions is the equivalent of having ten invisible tabs running at all times.

1. Click the Extension icon (it looks like a puzzle piece) in the top right corner of the Chrome toolbar.
2. Click on Manage Extensions at the bottom of the drop-down menu.
3. You will see a grid of every extension installed on your browser.
4. Be ruthless. If you installed a coupon finder two years ago and haven’t used it since, click the Remove button to permanently delete it.
5. If you use an extension occasionally but don’t need it running 24/7, click the small blue toggle switch in the corner of its card to turn it Off. You can easily flip it back on when you actually need it.

Step 3: Enable Energy Saver (For Laptops)

If you are using Chrome on a laptop running on battery power, memory usage isn’t your only problem; Chrome’s aggressive background processing will drain your battery incredibly fast. You can limit Chrome’s thirst for system resources by enabling Energy Saver.

1. Go back to the Performance menu (Settings > Performance).
2. Scroll down past the Memory Saver section until you find the Energy Saver toggle.
3. Turn the switch On.
4. Select the option to turn it on Turn on only when my battery is at 20% or lower (or choose to have it on whenever the laptop is unplugged).

When Energy Saver activates, Chrome will deliberately limit background activity, reduce the frame rate of animations, and stop smooth scrolling. The browser will feel slightly less responsive, but it will consume significantly less RAM and drastically extend your laptop’s battery life.